Lok Sabha Elections and results 2013-2014 Info

Wednesday, 5 March 2014

Total 81.45 million voters in this election (the last time was 7, 1.3 million). Of these, 2.30 million are 18-19 years old. 2.88 per cent of the total. The total voters in the last election in this age group were only 0.75 per cent. This will be one hundred million new voters. This number is very important.

Which won the most seats in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections , the Congress had received 11.9 million votes . The biggest opposition party BJP 7.8 million votes in the last elections . 2.6 BSP and CPM , had received 2.2 million votes . Barring these parties, no political party had not been able to vote 1 million . These figures are enough to show the importance of new voters .

The five states with the lowest average was not a Delhi. Delhi, where it was believed to be about that much due to elevated levels of voter education ' note ' will use. However, it was stated that the party as a better option due to the common man in Delhi ' Nota ' use declined. Whatever the reason, but the above figures are enough to show that the " Nota " can be used to change the electoral equation.

In terms of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, at least 160 of the 543 seats that will decide the future of social media. The most important thing is that the right to vote for the first time in the 9 million to 10 million voters are active on social media. According to the survey, more than a third of social media users live in cities with populations of less than 5 million, while over 25 per cent of social media users are cities with a population less than 2 million.

Between April 7 May 12, nine days after the elections on May 16 voting will get a clearer picture of the 16th Lok Sabha.

Tuesday, 17 December 2013

Vasundhara Raje will be sworn in as chief minister at a star-studded ceremony on the premises of the Assembly building in Jaipur on Friday. Governor Margaret Alva will administer the oath of office to Raje in the presence of several senior BJP leaders including LK Advani, prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi, party president Rajnath Singh and other senior leaders, party sources said. The ceremony will start at 11.45 am and is expected to continue till 2 pm.

Eleven chartered flights will be coming to Jaipur airport with the guests. Till afternoon about 40,000 passes were distributed to various party workers for the oath taking ceremony, said sources.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and senior party leader Murli Maohar Joshi will not be able to make it because of the ongoing session of Parliament. Party’s chief minister candidate for Delhi Harshwardhan too is not coming. He cancelled his visit due to ongoing political situation in Delhi.

Meanwhile party leaders like Shahnawaz Hussain, Kaptan Singh Solanki and Satpal Malik have already arrived in city on Thursday while other guests are expected to arrive on Friday morning. City’s five stars hotels have been booked to accommodate the VVIPs attending the ceremony. However, due to the peak tourist season most city hotels, particularly the 5-stars are finding it difficult to provide accommodation to the visiting guests.

Over 50 thousands visitors are expected to attend the ceremony for which arrangements are being made within the building premises and outside Janpath, sources said.

Seating arrangements, drinking water facility, parking and security among other arrangements were being finalised till late night for visitors who will attend the programme at Janpath.

The unexpected inspection by chief minister Vasundhara Raje on Saturday left the officials of urban development housing (UDH) department and Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) shocked. The officials are now pressing all their manpower into service to beautify the city in order to avoid inviting wrath of the newly appointed CM.

ACS (UDH) GS Sandhu held a high-level meeting at JDA on Saturday. Seven departments - traffic, JMC, JDA, RHB, PHED, JCTSL and JMRC - took part in the meeting and sought suggestions as what more needs to be done to improve the city’s condition. Sandhu, sources said, gave the mantra of working ‘day and night’ to address civic issues.

He directed the officials to repair potholes on roads at Metro sites. No complaint regarding streetlights should persist and leakages in water pipelines should get repaired immediately, he told the officials. Parking in the Walled City should also be well managed. Raje’s visit ‘distressed’ Sandhu to such an extent that he noted down the contact numbers of engineers accountable for road construction in his personnel diary.

Sources said that Sandhu is heading the UDH department for the past five years under Gehlot government. Only for seven months, he was given the charge of home following Gopalgarh violence. So any lapse in sanitation management and road repairing would put him in trouble.

Another reason for being extra cautious is his being a favourite bureaucrat of ex-CM Gehlot. Sandhu was UDH and local self governance secretary for a long time during the first term of Gehlot (1998-2003). When Raje came to power in 2003, he went on deputation at Centre for five years.

Jaipur development commissioner Abhay Kumar is also quite cautious over the proposed inspections by CM. Kumar directed his officials to ensure that all roads are repaired. Raje had recently expressed dissatisfaction over the poor condition of roads in the city.

BJP’s Rajendra Rathore defeating his nearest rival of Congress and sitting MLA Hazi Maqbool Mandelia with a margin of over 24,000 votes, in the Churu Assembly election, polling for which was held on Friday, saffron party’s tally has now swollen to 163 in the 200-member state Assembly.

Election at Churu had been postponed following the death of BSP candidate Jagdish Meghwal and polling with 78.55 per cent was held on December 13.

BJP candidate and former PWD minister Rajendra Rathore defeated his nearest rival of Congress and sitting MLA Manddelia by a huge margin of over 24,000 votes. Notably, the security of seven other candidates was forfeited as they failed to secure the required number of votes.

Early in the day the counting of casted votes started and Rathore, by the fourth round, was leading by a margin of 9,333 votes against his nearest rival and sitting legislator Mandelia. When the final result poured in, Rathore had won the seat by getting 84,100 votes, while the sitting legislator Mandelia secured 60,098 votes.

Rathore is considered a close confidant of chief minister Vasundhara Raje and was also a sitting MLA from Taranagar Assembly constituency. However, he changed his seat and the party fielded him against Mandelia from Churu. The voting for Churu constituency would have happened on December 1 but it was postponed following the demise of BSP candidate Jagdish Meghwal and polling was held on Decembewr 13. Notably, on November 16, Meghwal, was travelling by a bus to Churu from Jhunjhunu when he started vomiting. He was referred to government hospital in Churu, where doctors declared him dead. After the incident the elections in Churu constituency were deferred.

BJP’s state president Vasundhara Raje was sworn-in as the chief minister of Rajasthan on December 13. The Cabinet formation is still pending and there is a strong possibility that Rathore will now be inducted as a Cabinet minister since he was the PWD minister in the previous Vasundhara Raje government and is known to be trusted aide of Raje.

He was considered as the right hand man of the current president of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) but with the change in the power centre, this official known for various controversies surrounding him has now switched over to the other side. Camping with the opposite group after sensing the weakened condition of his former boss, this official came to the other side of fence on Sunday evening surprising many. Now he has been asking for a post in the cricket association as an award for his changed loyalties. He also made telephone call to one of the officials of the other group expressing his desire of getting a post in the cricket association. But he was told that he should consider it as his reward and should feel happy for being spared from any probable inquiry for his various irregularities committed earlier.

It was just one hour left to close the nominations for the elections of the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA). Election officials and media were waiting for the Lalit Modi group to file their nominations. At about 2: 15 pm packed in seven cars, president of Sriganganagar District Cricket Association Mehmood Abdi and secretary of the Kota District Cricket Association Amin Pathan, with their supporters arrived at the RCA Academy, in Jaipur on Monday. They filed 12 sets of papers in support of Lalit Modi’s candidature as the RCA president and showed their strength by 12 districts supporting the candidature making it 24 district cricket associations out of 33 supporting Lalit Modi.

The scene at the RCA Academy, where the nomination process was going on, was buzzing with murmurs surrounding return of Modi in the RCA who had surprised each and everyone with his style of working.

There are comparisons been drawn between the working of Modi and how everything would change in RCA in case of his probable win as the RCA president.

Meanwhile coming out, Mehmood Abdi informed the media that the election was tilted towards Lalit Modi and there was no CP Joshi group in the fray for the RCA elections as current president CP Joshi has not filed his nominations.“There are no groups now but there is only one group of the RCA. There are a few candidates who have filed their nominations but they should be treated as independents,” he said while informing the media.

Together with him was secretary from Kota District Cricket Association and BJP leader Amin Pathan who is considered a close aide of Modi.

In 2009 Amin Pathan was allegedly manhandled by other group but on Monday he was confidently walking at the RCA with a probable win on his mind. Pathan has been included in the panel for vice-president’s post in these elections. Earlier on Sunday, in yet another blow to the CP Joshi group in the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), the executive committee changed the team of lawyers which was representing the RCA in various legal matters.

It was decided in the executive meeting of the RCA held on Sunday. It was decided to change the lawyers making it a smooth ride for Lalit Modi in various legal issues. A key official in the current executive committee confirmed the move and said the meeting was called over just one agenda “to change the lawyers”. Notably, with the change of the government in the state, the tables in the RCA have also turned in favour of Lalit Modi.

Sunday, 8 December 2013

By the time you would have finished reading this story, in most likelihood, the counting of votes for 199 of the 200 Assembly seats that went to polls on December 1, would have started in state. In the following couple of hours everyone would know if BJP’s Vasundhara Raje is returning to 8 Civil Lines or chief minister Ashok Gehlot has managed to retain his official residence.An internal survey conducted by the BJP has indicated that the party is clearing the magical number of 101 by a mile. That confidence is largely being attributed to its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s influence on voters.
Even punters are betting on the BJP to form the next government, though their stake on the BJP has narrowed down to the single largest party, just short of a majority. The Congress on the other hand, is tipped to lose nearly two-dozen seats if sources involved in rounding off an estimate for the party are to be believed. However, one factor that lends more than just hope to Gehlot is the popularity of welfare schemes like free medicines and pension. His hopes of a comeback have been bolstered by the higher voter turnout in rural areas.
But both parties are jittery because they are unable to decode a record 75% voter turnout. While, the BJP ‘s reading of the turnout is limited to Modi’s impact on voters, the Congress is looking at it as a mandate for the government’s good governance. In 2008, the Congress had won 96 seats, while the BJP was reduced to 78 seats. Gehlot had managed to absorb 6 candidates of the BSP into Congress and also got Dausa MP, now NPP state chief, Kirori Lal Meena’s support to form the government.
Since 1998, even a minor swing of votes has resulted in win for one party and defeat for the other. It would, therefore, be interesting to see if the NPP and independents can make a difference to the outcome of the polls or just find themselves relegated to sidelines.

Wednesday, 4 December 2013

BJP’s election campaign in Rajasthan concluded on Friday with a rally by Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in Jodhpur, the home turf of chief minister Ashok Gehlot. The massive rally by BJP’s prime ministerial candidate has certainly strengthened the prospects of BJP candidates in the district but fight between both the Congress and BJP has become more intense. Though BJP seems to be leading in Jodhpur district but caste factor coupled with consolidation of minority vote bank in favour of ruling Congress has made the contest interesting.The fight is so intense that even chief minister Ashok Gehlot’s victory margin may shrink this time as compared to the previous Assembly election. Modi factor has definitely consolidated the Muslim votes in the kitty of ruling Congress but how far it will polarise the general votes will only be discovered after the results are out on December 8.According to the locals, either it will be around 5 seats to each party or if Modi factor and internal fractions of the party works, the Congress might have to be content with two to three seats in the region. Contest is equally interesting on the three seats in the city which include, Sardarpura, Sursagar and Jodhpur city. BJP candidate Surya Kanta Vyas from Sursagar has an upper hand but maximum young voters of the area see her as a candidate who is very old. The Congress has fielded Jeffu Khan who had lost the Assembly election in 2003 from Phalodi and has not been active in Sursagar. Meanwhile Rajendra Gehlot former mayor and BJP leader has turned rebel which is not only damaging the BJP but also polarising the Mali vote bank. In the area Malis, Brahamins, Minority and ST/SC are in majority but due to Modi factor the Minority will vote for Jeffu which brings him back into the contest.In Jodhpur city constituency Congress has fielded Suparash Bhandari who has been the chairman of a renowned insurance company. He has been handling the election management of Ashok Gehlot since the beginning and got rewarded this time. He has spent most of his time outside Jodhpur and is a new face here. Anand Bhati who is a pro BJP leader is contesting as an Independent. Earlier Jugal Kabra was also in the race from this seat but has been sidelined as he does not fit in Rahul Gandhi formula. Jain, Brahmin and Minority voters are in a majority from this seat and there is strong resentment against BJP candidate and present legislator Kailash Bansali. This is a direct fight between Bansali and Bhandari, and it is only the Modi factor that might work in Bansali’s favour.In Sardarpura, chief minister Ashok Gehlot is clearly seen as winning but the margin of victory may get reduced this time. BJP candidate Shambhu Singh Khetasar is campaigning strongly in the area. Minority and Mali voters are the major vote bank here and constitute over 1 lakh votes. Khetasar had long time ago defeated Ashok Gehlot once in the students union election in Jodhpur and he is hoping to repeat that feat.Luni and Osain are the two seats where Congress is already considered out of race and both Amri Devi from Luni and Leela Maderna from Osian are not in comfortable positions. On Luni seat Rajendra Chaudhary, former health minister in Congress government is contesting as a rebel.Another seat from the region, Lohawat is a Bishnoi dominant seat and Congress has given ticket to Mala Ram Bishnoi and his old age is a major concern among the voters. However, Gajendra Singh is yet another strong candidate from the BJP is giving a tough fight to Bishnoi despite being seen as an outsider.On seats like Phalodi and Bilara the BJP has an upper hand and the party is seen as clear winner on all grounds. In Bilara the BJP has fielded Arjun Lal Meghwal the present MLA who is immensely popular among all castes.While in Phalodi BJP’s Pubba Ram Chaudhary is leading. There is a strong anti incumbency factor against present Congress candidate and present legislator Om Prakash Joshi. From Bhopalgarh seat it is again a tough fight between Congress candidate Oma Ram Meghwal and BJP’s Kamsa Meghwal. While the BJP has repeated the old face, who also enjoys the support of Jat voters, the Congress has fielded a new face. Bhopalgarh is a reserved seat and Kamsa is taking a lead here.In Shergarh its BJP’s Babu Singh Rathore who is contesting against Congress candidate Umaid Singh Rathore. Babu has been active since past five years and has done a lot of development works in the area but Umaid Singh is the close relative of senior leader Khet Singh Rathore. Babu Singh has an upper edge but contest here is very close according to locals.

If a gun licence instead of a gun is shown to a lion, he won’t get scared. Same way, just making laws for poor was not enough, and their implementation was also required. JP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi flayed Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi in his back-to-back rallies in Ajmer, Kuchera (Nagaur), Sikar and Bhilwara on Thursday. “They (Congress leaders) thrive on their British legacy of divide and rule,” Modi said in Ajmer. He also took a dig at Gehlot government saying that more than 40 riots had occurred in the last five-year-rule of Congress in Rajasthan.
Countering Sonia Gandhi’s statement that BJP is a party of poisonous people, Modi retorted that Congress has thrived on ‘poison of power’.
“The Congress shehzada (Rahul) had once said that power is poison. Who has remained in power for more than 60 years?” asked Modi. He also flayed the Central government and said, “You can’t buy 300 grams of onions but the economist prime minister says you are not poor if you earn Rs26 a day.”
In his rally in Sikar, Modi attacked the Congress alleging that it has not fulfilled its constitutional obligations and “destroyed” the nation in its nearly six decades rule.
They do only one thing better than us. They do corruption the best. One can see this in BJP-ruled states like Chhattisgarh, MP and others. Banswara: Sharpening his attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said there was only one thing it did better than Congress - corruption - and branded the opposition party as ‘masters’ in it. Rahul claimed that while Congress did better than BJP on all other fronts including development, it had surrendered before the Opposition party on the corruption front.
“Today I can acknowledge one thing from this dais. They do only one thing better than us. They do corruption the best. One can see this in BJP-ruled states like Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and others. They are the masters in corruption and they are way ahead of us. We surrender on this issue before them,” he said at a poll meeting in Banswara.
Gandhi also hit out at BJP for not standing up for the rights of the poor, saying the Opposition party while opposing various social sector schemes for welfare of the poor had said they were “a waste of money”.
In his attempt to woo tribals in Banswara, the Congress leader claimed the Congress always stood up for the rights of not just the poor but also for tribals and Dalits. Gandhi said that elections were important, but people need to distinguish between two parties and their ideologies.
He also said that while the Bharatiya Janata Party leaders had made tall claims in their speeches, they never stood by the poor, while Congress thought about the poor and their welfare along with development.
He said the wall of poverty that stood before the poor needs to be broken for them to progress fast and promised that Congress would break this wall to take them forward.

Tuesday, 3 December 2013

Minority vote share has increased tremendously consolidating Congress’ position. Courtesy, Modi. The party is still banking on its flagship schemes and there has been no anti-incumbency sentiment against state government nor were there any local issues. In such a scenario, lesser the polarization of general voters brighter are Congress’ chances, especially when minority voting has been one-sided.

WHY BJP

It may be the Narendra Modi wave that polarized young voters, women and the common man who has been hit hard by inflation and corruption. If Modi factor really worked in BJP’s favour, BJP will get clear majority especially in light of high voting. The percent of senior and male voters has also increased. But has Modi really been able to polarize the general voters? This will be revealed on December 8.

Whether BJP wins or loses, all credit will still go to Modi.

Despite dearth of local issues and anti-incumbency factor against the Gehlot-led state government, the voting percent in the state has been at an all-time high in the 2013 Assembly elections in Rajasthan. And Narendra Modi is being seen as the main reason behind escalation of polling, but political insiders share that this rise in turnout could work out in either party’s favour.

BJP leaders are of the view that high voting is clearly representative of their prime ministerial candidate striking a chord with the women and first-time voters, which are more than 25 lakh in number.

“It’s obviously the Modi factor. Modi campaigned here for the first time and thus the high per cent of voters. Not only did women and youth turn out increased but Modi factor has also taken reluctant voters to the polling booths; Modi is no less then hero. So a BJP government is just a couple of days away. Besides the general voter percent has also increased,” said a senior BJP leader.

“This turnout clearly indicates that there will be no hung Assembly this time. So BJP is obviously in the driving seat,” he added confidently.

On the contrary, what BJP believes worked in its favour could also spell its doom.

Modi’s aggressive campaigning in various pockets of the state consolidated the minority vote bank in Congress’ favour. Party leaders who have been denying that Modi could influence voters are now admitting that his image has increased the minority vote by 9-10 per cent in various regions of the state.

“Voting per cent has been very high especially in areas Modi conducted his public rallies,” a senior Congress leader shared.

“Voting in polling booths near Dargah area, which was hardly 40 per cent in last elections, has shot up to more than 80 per cent this time. In Jaisalmer, voting has been 85 percent, of which 60 per cent belong to minority community while rest 20 percent are Meghwals. This is a clear indication that minority voting has increased and has been one-sided in favour of Congress,” he added.

Party leaders claim that the flagship schemes are “also” a major factor.

However, voting share has increased in every category be it the minority, among youths, women or the elderly. Despite high percentage of voting the polarization of votes, be it minority or general, will decide the winner in most constituencies where victory margins is likely to be very slim this time. May be this is the reason both parties have called a meeting of their candidates.

Taking the high polling percentage as a clear sign of anti-incumbency, the exuberant BJP leadership has called its division-wise meeting of party candidates and district presidents on Tuesday.

The meeting aims to act as a reality check from candidates and district heads about party’s performance in their areas and have a realistic tally of seats BJP’s clinched before the Election Commission declares the outcome on December 8.

BJP state chief Vasundhara Raje, national secretary Bhudendra Yadav, leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria and other leaders will have one-on-one interactions with leaders and candidates from Bikaner, Bharatpur, Kota and Ajmer divisions — areas that hold hope for the BJP.

“We are clearly emerging as single largest party in the House. More and more people voted for Modi. This is evident from the high voting percentage. Interaction with leaders is taking place to know the ground reality and their experience in the elections,” a senior BJP leader told dna.

Leaders informed that besides feedback, party will also train candidates in their while the counting is on. Another important objective will be to tally the expense sheets of the party and the candidate that will be given to the Election Commission (EC).

“Two types of expenditure reports have to be submitted to the EC. One report shows the expenditure done by candidate in the elections, while the other report is the expenditure done by party in the constituencies where it had fielded its candidates. To avoid repetition, senior leaders will tally the information so that correct report can submitted to the EC,” said a senior BJP leader.

This is perhaps the only reason why convener and co-convener of the Chartered Accountancy Cell, Rajesh Mangal and RP Vijay, have been included in the interaction session. State in-charge Kaptan Singh and leaders like V Satish will remain missing from this meeting.

Just a day after polling for the Assembly elections in Rajasthan, the Congress summoned all its candidates at party headquarters to take a stock of the situation. Senior leaders, including chief minister Ashok Gehlot, PCC chief Chandrabhan, state in-charge Gurudas Kamat and Congress leader CP Joshi will hold one-on-one meetings with the candidates. The two-day exercise is being conducted to get the math right for the party to retain power in state.

However, chief minter Ashok Gehlot has already taken a detailed report as to who is wining and who is trailing in all the 199 constituencies that went to polls on Sunday, sources said.

The work in this regard was done at his level and the report was with him by Sunday evening, a reliably placed Congress official said. The interaction with all the 199 candidates will only cross-check Gehlot’s report and also the strength and weakness of the candidates will also come out in the party forum, the source added.

“This interaction will certainly decide the future course of action for the party. The exact position, like how many MLAs are winning, how short we may fall of forming the government will be discussed in the meet,” a Congress candidate summoned for the meeting on Monday told dna.

Sources in the party informed dna that a detailed report of this interaction will be sent to the party high command, which had laid down specific guidelines for distribution of tickets. “The new candidates will also be guided on their role on the day of counting. They would be told about what things they should take care on that day,” said a senior Congress candidate. Interestingly PCC chief Chandrabhan who will be one among those interacting with candidates has also contested election from Mandawa, where chances of his winning are seen very grim. What report and feedback the PCC chief give to the CM will be quite interesting to watch on Tuesday when all the 199 Congress candidates meet.

Whether it is Arvind Kejriwal or Narendra Modi, much of their appeal today has to do with the mood in large parts of the country reflecting a desire for change and for a decisive leadership

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has clearly emerged as the joker in the pack in the 2013 assembly elections. The fledgling party which has emerged in just a year with the potential to upset conventional calculations has been giving sleepless nights to both the mainstream parties.

In the past, there have been small parties that hit the headlines at poll time and then disappeared. Sometimes they had a nuisance value, because they damaged one of the main players enabling the other to win. But the AAP is cutting into the votes of both the BJP and the Congress. This is borne out by the revelation in surveys that one third of those voting for AAP in Delhi would vote for Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha elections.

By taking on Sheila Dikshit in her constituency in New Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal has upped the ante against the Congress. He could have stood from a host of other constituencies and been certain of victory, but Kejriwal chose to beard the lioness in her den, thereby carving out a larger profile for himself and his party.

Broadly, four scenarios will determine the kind of impact AAP will have in the days to come. If the party gets confined to 2-3 seats, even as it garners around 15 per cent of the vote share, it may not disappear but will be reduced to being a group — like the lone member of Lok Satta Party, N Jayaprakash Narayan, in the Andhra Pradesh assembly — which critiques mainstream politics. And Kejriwal may once again join hands with Anna Hazare who plans to sit on a dharna next week to push for the passage of the Lok Pal Bill in the Upper House.

But if the party wins around 10 seats and garners around 22 per cent of votes, as predicted by several surveys, Kejriwal will go for the spaces where the Congress, and the BJP are weak and vulnerable — be it in UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand, or Himachal Pradesh.

It would be no mean achievement if the AAP does manage to get around 22 per cent of the votes, and that too in a period of one year. For, regional parties like the BSP and the SP, JD(U) and the RJD have hit those figures after years of struggle.

Unlike many regional groups, which rely on caste as their basis, and whose discourse is confined to their respective states, AAP has positioned itself as a national force, reaching out to all segments. Today, the Congress is anchored in consumer politics of goodies and freebies and the BJP in majoritarian politics, bringing in performance and polarization in a new formulation. AAP is trying to focus on issues of citizenship, governance, and accountability, which could have an appeal for the young.

However, such a scenario will also — and this is ironic — hold the biggest challenge for AAP’s identity, catapulted as it would be into a situation in which it has to deal with huge expectations. It would be called to dismantle the existing system, in place for 15 years now — which is hardly likely to cooperate with it — and to do this with no administrative experience or even a relationship with the bureaucracy to fall back on, is a daunting task. “Government as a movement” is easier said than done. It is not without interest that such an eventuality is being discussed, in muted tones, inside the Congress.

If that happens, it is not inconceivable that Kejriwal decides to take on both Rahul Gandhi and Narendra Modi in their respective constituencies in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. He has already shown that he is not a risk-averse leader, and goes for the jugular, whether it was his decision to part company with Anna Hazare, to float a new party, or to take on Sheila Dikshit.

In 1962, Socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia had contested against Jawaharlal Nehru in the general elections but had lost to the then PM badly. But that one act of taking on the country’s tallest figure had laid the ground for the non-Congress SVD governments all over North India in 1967.

Depending on its performance, AAP, then, could turn out to be more than just an “upstart” element in the Delhi elections. Its emergence as a force would show that urban India now wants a new politics, that is more oriented towards delivery and development. These assembly elections will capture some of the ground level shifts that are taking place.

Let’s be clear. Whether it is the Arvind Kejriwal phenomenon, or the Narendra Modi effect — and to a lesser extent even the Jaganmohan Reddy factor — much of their appeal today has to do with a mood in large parts of the country, reflecting a desire for change and for a decisive leadership, which can lead from the front.

Senior Congress leader CP Joshi said that voting turnout has increased due to several reasons in this election. According to him, the efforts of Election Commission cannot be ignored as it did a lot of campaigning which increased the voter turnout. “The voter slips delivered to individuals at their residences. Besides it’s also the Congress schemes targeting individual beneficiaries which played a role. Parties like NPP, BSP and independents made efforts to increase their respective vote share,” Joshi said, adding that over 20,000 votes increased in most of the constituencies. “Electoral rolls were updated continuously. All these factors resulted in higher turnout of voters,” said Joshi. When asked whether it (high voter turnout) was due to Modi effect, Joshi said, “Congress Pension Scheme has benefited around 49 lakh people across the state. Voting slips were also sent to them. So this means that they must have voted in favour of Congress.”

Chief minister Ashok Gehlot said on Tuesday that Congress party would win Assembly elections by a landslide due to its work done in the past five years. Denying any impact of Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, Gehlot said that BJP and their state chief Vasundhara Raje have no vision which was evident from the fact that they had not fixed any agenda in this election. In the entire campaign, they (BJP leaders) just tried to spread confusion by making baseless allegations, he alleged. “Elections have just ended and the BJP is now busy in forming its council of ministers. They are trying to build a confusing atmosphere in the state. They are masters in creating atmosphere in their favour everywhere, be it media or in political surveys. But reality will emerge only on December 8,” said Gehlot. He added, “They are doing it so that parties like BSP, NPP and independents give them support thinking that BJP is coming to power.”

Will the cost of making a helipad for landing of star campaigner’s chopper be added to candidate’s expenditure?

How to show the expense of a rally?

These were among the questions that BJP candidates, who had arrived for the feedback programme at party’s Jaipur office on Tuesday, put up before the chartered accountants (CAs) and financial experts at the meeting.

The candidates wanted to know how and what to show as election expenditure. Several leaders like member of Parliament from Bikaner Arjun Meghwal, Deeg candidate Digamber Singh, Kishangarh candidate Bhagirath Choudhary were among those who asked various questions from the members of party’s CA cell during the feedback programme held in Jaipur on Tuesday, said sources.Bhagirath Choudhary wanted to know about the way to show expenditures made during the political rallies.

Most of the candidates were worried on how to show the expenses pertaining to arrival and campaigning by ‘star campaigners’ in their constituencies. They were particularly worried over the expenses made during Narendra Modi’s visit to their constituencies and wanted to know how such expenses should be shown while furnishing information to the election department, said sources.Most of the queries were from candidates of Jhalawar who had several questions pertaining to the election expenses.

Notably, as per the Election Commission’s guideline, every candidate was allowed to spend a maximum of Rs 16 lakh as election expenses. The candidates now have to submit their expenditures in a month’s time.

On the first day its ‘feedback session’, the BJP top brass held a one-on-one interaction with its candidates from Bikaner, Bharatpur, Kota and Ajmer divisions on Tuesday.

Sources said that BJP state president Vasundhara Raje interacted with the candidates individually and asked them about their winning prospects.

Party leaders were trying to get booth-wise details from all these candidates.They were asked to give an ‘honest picture’ about their ‘possible victory or defeat’ so that the party could then ascertain a tally of seats it hopes to get based on which further strategy would be devised.

It was made clear to the candidates that if they are getting defeated, then they should also tell who was winning and who was coming second, said the sources.The feedback session of these two divisions continued till about 2 pm, after which BJP’s candidate from Karauli Rohini Kumari and Kolayat candidate Devi Singh Bhati came out. Later, the candidates from Kota and Ajmer divisions were also asked these questions in the feedback session.

Sources said that based on this feedback, the party would be deciding its future course of action.The party would be taking feedback from candidates of other divisions, including Jaipur division, on Wednesday.

In the morning, Udaipur division, Sikar, Jhunjhunu, Dausa and Alwar candidates would be meeting the party’s state top brass and in the evening, Jodhpur and Jaipur candidates would be giving their feedback. BJP’s state vice-president Onkar Singh Lakhawat said that the party passed two resolutions in the morning. The party thanked the voters for voting in large numbers and its own party workers who worked tirelessly for the organisation in the Assembly elections. Party’s senior leader Gulab Chand Kataria addressed the party candidates and claimed that the “wave was similar to that of 1977”.

The high voter turnout in the Assembly polls may have triggered jubilation in the state BJP already but a section of the party leaders are baffled and still have doubts about a clear majority to the party in state elections.

This is the reason why BJP office bearers are taking account of prospects of victory from all the candidates besides a close look at the polling booth-wise voting patterns and the caste-based voting.

This introspection would help BJP arrive at a better analysis of its prospects on the 199 Assembly seats in the state.

This time the voting percentage has risen by 9% and interestingly both BJP and Congress have sufficient reasons to draw a conclusion that all is well for them. According to sources, the BJP has started its analysis to assess whether this unprecedented rise is in its favour or not. Meanwhile, the state BJP is projecting the high voter turnout to be in its favour and an indication of clear majority to party as well as a reflection of state’s mandate against the UPA and Congress-led government in the state. In reality, however, BJP is in the process of assessing the profit-loss equation arising out of the high vote percentage.

Starting Tuesday, the BJP called its candidates from divisions of the state for a feedback session in the capital seeking polling booth-wise information on voting. “Data related to booth-wise voting for and against the candidates were recorded. In addition to this, data related to polling pattern is also being collected from the district presidents of the party so that the information given by the candidates can be cross-checked.

As per sources, the BJP wants to be sure about the total seats it will win on the basis of a ground report rather than on the hyped equation.

This is the reason why reports are sought from candidates and party office bearers both. It is said that the party will be able to assess the exact number of seats on which it will be leading. Meanwhile, the BJP also has a close eye on the constituencies where the Independents are at a better footing so that they can be contacted if the party falls short of majority in the state.

The one-on-one interaction with Congress candidates conducted at the PCC office by senior party leaders on Tuesday was not only an attempt to explore the possibilities in case of a hung Assembly, but also played an important role in deciding the roadmap for general elections due next year.

During the feedback, maximum candidates complained about lack of support by senior leaders and internal strife claiming it dented their prospects in the elections. Candidates complained about the local leaders who, driven by their personal grievances, worked against the interest of the party in the elections thereby damaging the party’s prospects in several pockets.

Many candidates even submitted a list of such leaders at local level and demanded their expulsion. During the interaction, report card of MPs and other senior leaders was also prepared wherein report was taken about their role in their areas during Assembly election. This is also being seen as start of Lok Sabha poll preparation by the Congress.

The candidates also briefed the seniors about their present prospects, swing of votes and factors that worked in their constituencies. “The present priority of the party is to delve into the possibility of a hung Assembly and get prepared with all possible combinations. But the trend and perception of voters, local issues, caste combination, role of senior leaders including MPs, and internal strife, if any, will help the party to come out with more aggressive strategy for the general elections,” said a senior Congress leader.

In all, the interaction mainly revolved around three factors which include ground reality and trend, role of senior leaders including MPs and internal strife, if any, he added. Sources informed that the entire exercise was conducted at the direction of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, a detailed report of which will be submitted to him in the next two days.

Tuesday’s interaction lasted for more than 12 hours in which candidate from 28 districts were called for interaction with Congress leader CP Joshi, state in-charge Gurudas Kamat, chief minister Ashok Gehlot, PCC chief Chandrbhaan and others.

Sunday, 1 December 2013

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi while addressing a rally in Delhi Anbedkrnrgr Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit lauded hit out at the BJP. He said, "Delhi has completely changed. Delhi Sheila Dikshit has completely changed. Delhi is the development of nowhere. "

Rahul Gandhi said, "Sheila Ji spectacular way the government has undertaken in the previous regime. People know only the speech of BJP. Congress is designed to empower the common man. RTI has great authority by Congress to the common man. "Less predictable Rahul rally crowd watching the speech finished just seven minutes.

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi , who advised him to apologize and issue a statement of Union Minister Jairam Ramesh has unfolded . RSS Jayaram said that Maoist violence are met . However , he also said he has no proof of it . He said , " What is the reason that despite the deployment of a large number of CRPF in Naxal areas, we are unable to do anything . It seems to me the connivance of the Union .. " Earlier , Jairam Ramesh said Rahul Gandhi should apologize to the Muslim community . He said that the Aligarh Muslim youths riot-hit Pakistan 's ISI is approaching . Strand Congress Jairam remarks about Gandhi , saying that the EC has clarified . Jairam Ramesh , Congress has said that it may be personal opinion . However , the BJP Rahul Gandhi joked that now see that Muslims apologize for his statement or apologize Jairam Ramesh, Rahul Gandhi is required .

Islamic Cultural Centre in New Delhi on Saturday Urdu Talking to journalists, Ramesh said his (Rahul Gandhi's) intent was not to tarnish the image of a community. A section of the media and congressional opponents raise him - was hyped. They basically secular. In this case the image can not be any doubt.

Ramesh Gandhi was brought to the attention of the relevant statements of the victims of rioting minorities rage in Muzaffarnagar . He said the vice-president himself should clarify this . Is safe in the hands secular country . Congress is determined to preserve the secular nature of India . Protect the nature of the country, his party has always been and will continue in the future .